Since the discovery that smoking is harmful to health, there has been a world wide effort by the tobacco industry to research and develop a safe non-toxic tobacco composition. It is hoped that a tobacco composition can be developed to alleviate or even to prevent cancer, coronary heart disease, and other pulmonary diseases caused by smoking.
Up to the present, processes for improving the tobacco combustion process to reduce the content of tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide in tobacco smoke have been developed. These include the production of cigarets with improved ventilation, cigarets with synthetic low tar tobacco, a process to fluff tobacco, as well as putting additives in tobacco compositions.
Many additives for tobacco has been reported. Most of the additives used are chemicals, such as metal palladium and its salts, nitrates, silicates, sugar, etc. See U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,338,246; 2,429,567; 4,248,251 and German patent application No. 817,717. These additives are found to be somewhat useful in improving the combustion process to reduce tar, nicotine and carbon monoxide content in tobacco smoke.
Among diseases induced by smoking, chronic bronchitis claims the highest number of victims. About 50-80% chronic bronchitis patients are smokers. Chronic bronchitis caused by smoking is therefore, a major health hazard. However, up to the present, very few studies has been undertaken to relieve this condition and no successful effort has been reported.
It is, therefore, an objective of the present invention to develop a tobacco composition which is effective in easing chronic bronchitis, reducing phlegm, relieving coughing, and improving the condition of the lung. It is a further objective of the present invention to develop an easy and inexpensive process to produce a tobacco composition with low tar, and nicotine content.